Now they both looked angry. I wanted to run back to the safety of Tyson’s room and hide out.
“What did you hear?” Abel growled at me as Addison put his hand in my lower back and pushed me forward.
I stumbled forward with the force of it and turned to glare at him. He returned the glare, only his was far fiercer than mine, and it looked better on him than I imagined mine looked on me.
“She fucked Ty all up by trying to put him and Quinton against each other and she tried to tear us apart. If not for Quint being the asshole that he is we wouldn’t still be together today.”
I shook my head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“So you didn’t hear anything about Annabell?” He sounded like he didn’t believe me.
“All Quinton said is that Annabell wasn’t his fault.” I held my hands up as if to ward him off. I did not like him shoving me in his brother’s direction. I did not like him shoving me at all. “I went downstairs to get something to eat and the only reason I hid and listened is because they were talking about me and I felt I had a right to know what they were saying. You don’t need to be mean to me when I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Okay, admittedly, eavesdropping is wrong, but I wasn’t going to admit it out loud.
“Back off, twin,” Abel said as he moved away from the wall and started to scoot across the bed.
Addison’s fists clenched at his sides and I took an unsteady step back, away from him.
Why, oh why had I not stayed in Tyson’s room where I’d been safe from this madness?
Addison’s chest rose and fell as he blew out a huge breath. He looked down at his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides and frowned.
“I’m sorry, Ariel” he whispered fiercely. “I would never hurt you, I hope you know that.”
I stared at him in silence. I had thought he wasn’t capable of hurting me until he shoved me, now I wasn’t so sure. I had been on the wrong side of someone else’s anger all my life, I didn’t want to take on any more.
I backed up a step, but it did me no good because he stood between me and the door. Backing up put me closer to Abel.
“Now you’ve done it, twin.” Abel told his brother quietly. Then wrapped his arms around me from behind and dragged me back across his soft sheet. The sheet was black and I wondered if Addison’s sheet was white. The salt and pepper twins were a bit of a conundrum, I didn’t think I would ever understand them.
They seemed to like the colors black and white, playing into my nicknames for them. I pictured them sitting in a dark, rustic room at a table before a roaring fire set in a massive fireplace. They sat directly across from each other. Between them was a carefully placed chess board covered in elegant black and white pieces. Addison sat forward in his chair and moved a black piece. Abel did the same with a white piece. I knew without a doubt the game would last for hours and neither would come out the victor, they’d end in a deadlock.
Abel shook me gently and I blinked, leaving thoughts of chess behind.
“Where did you go just now?” he whispered in my ear.
I shook my head and remained silent. There was no way I’d be telling them about any of the weird thoughts floating around in my head on the daily. Not gonna happen.
“Who is Annabell?” I asked bravely as Abel laid down, taking me with him. His front pressed tightly to my back. One arm moved beneath my head so I rested on it like a pillow. He dragged the white comforter up our bodies until it met my chin. Then he slid his arm beneath the blanket, curved it around my hip. Ever so slowly his hand moved up my stomach. I sucked in a sharp breath as his fingers trailed over my belly button and didn’t stop until they made it to my breasts, leaving a trail of heat burning across my middle. The palm of his hand pressed into my skin and he spread his fingers wide, brushing against my breasts.
Addison’s face appeared before me, making me flinch in surprise. I’d forgotten all about him, Abel had made me forget all about his twin with a simple touch of his hand.
“No,” Addison whispered vehemently. “You do not get to be afraid of me. You do not get to flinch because of me. I won’t allow it. I would never, not ever hurt you. If you’re frightened of me then you need to get over it. I can be an ass and I can be harsh, but I’ll never harm you physically.”
I thought that last statement interesting. Did that mean he’d likely harm me emotionally? I didn’t like the sound of that, not in the least bit.
“You keep shoving me-” I started to say when he cut me off.
“But have I hurt you?” he asked quietly.
I thought about his question, really thought about it and shook my head. No, he had never physically harmed me. Surprised me, yes. Shocked me, yes. And he’d certainly frightened me when he’d shoved me into their room and earlier when he’d shoved me down on top of Abel. But I was more so frightened by his anger with me, I didn’t think he’d actually hurt me. And I was upset because I didn’t want him to be angry with me. He wasn’t like my mother.
“Okay,” I whispered, unsure if I was agreeing with him or lying to him. It had been a long day and I didn’t think I could think straight. “I’m tired,” I told him honestly.
And hungry. I was still very hungry, but I’d have to wait to eat. No way was I going back down to the kitchen.
“Do you still want to hear about Annabell?” Addison whispered gently as he ran the back of his hand across my exposed cheek.